The Penguin Group » Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book

Review: Topped Chef by Lucy Burdette

May 162013

Topped Chef:
A Key West Food Critic Mystery
3rd Book in Series
An Obsidian Mystery (May 7, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0451239709
E-Book File Size: 528 KB
ASIN: B009UYXNSS

Hayley Snow loves her job as the food critic for Key Zest magazine, tasting the offerings from Key West’s most innovative restaurants. She’d rate her life four stars, until she’s forced into the spotlight…and another murder investigation.

Hayley’s boss has volunteered her to be a judge for the Key West Topped Chef contest hoping to score some extra publicity for his magazine. Hayley is both nervous and excited until she realizes one of the other judges is Sam Rizzoli. She just slammed his restaurant in her very first negative review.

When Rizzoli ends up dead speculation is one of his business rivals is responsible but Hayley has a feeling maybe someone is taking the chef contest a little too seriously. Hayley sees the police are not following the right leads so she decides it is up to her to serve up the actual killer.

Dollycas’s Thoughts
Lucy Burdette has me in love with Key West. Life on a boat in nice sunny Florida eating her way through all the delightful cuisine the area has to offer. Hayley better watch out I want to steal her job!

Burdette is such a strong writer and creates really lively characters and puts them in spectacular situations. The plots are tight and the twists are plenty.

The murder takes us from the docks to the inner workings of a reality tv show and even into the world of drag queens. I absolutely loved it. The new characters turned the story on its ear while they recurring characters continue to steal out hearts. Hayley’s mom even appears in Key West via Skype and Gloria becomes Hayley’s sidekick in the investigation..

A new character to this story is someone returning to Key West. She has disrupted Hayley’s life with her return and I am very interested to see how she effects it in future installments. Maybe a new direction is just what Hayley needs.

Add this one to your Summer Reading Lists! An impressive read that will tickle all of your senses. There are recipes included too!! so you can actually tickle your taste buds!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

About This Author

New Jersey born clinical psychologist Roberta Isleib took up writing mysteries to justify time spent on the links. Her first series, featuring a neurotic professional golfer and a sports psychologist, was nominated for both Agatha and Anthony awards. Roberta is now writing the Key West food critic mystery series as Lucy Burdette.

Check out Lucy’s blog here.

Her alter ego’s website here.

Follow her on Facebook on Twitter or an Pinterest

She is one of the Jungle Red Writers.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Special Thursday Edition of Cozy Wednesday with Author Sally Goldenbaum (Giveaway too!)

Cozy Wednesday, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Reviews 2013 64 Responses »

May 092013

Welcome to a Special Edition of Cozy Wednesday!

I am always excited to have Sally drop by for a visit!

Many, many thanks to the wonderful Lori Caswell for inviting me to drop in again. Dolly’s cozy corner is a perfect place to take a break, to relax with friends like you…and to talk about books and life. Today my topic is:

THE PERFECT PLACE TO WRITE

Recently I watched an HGTV show featuring a couple looking for their dream home.

The husband—a writer—was having a horrible time because he could only write in a bathtub, he said, and none of the homes they toured had one he considered suitable. Lots of questions ‘surfaced’ in my head—is there water in the tub? A pillow on the bottom? A waterproof computer on his knees….? (And certainly I had major curiosity about what he wrote.)

But each of us has our own quirks about where we write, and I moved on from bathtubs to thinking about a notable writer, Stephen King, who has strong ideas about where writers should write. He says all novelists should have a serene, preferably dull, writing place. But dull and serene is very subjective, don’t you think? I spend lots of time writing in a local coffee shop. I easily block out the cappuccino machines and gossip and crying babies. But when I need to come up for air and prove to myself that there are other people living in this beautiful universe, I look up from my laptop and rejoice at the people around me, proof that I haven’t totally left the world of the living.

Different stories require different writing spaces. While working on the fifth book in the Seaside Knitters Mystery series,The Wedding Shawl, I spent the summer writing on my screened porch with Nancy Pickard, who was writing The Scent of Rain and Lightning, The view of my back yard, where my daughter was married a few years earlier, was the inspiration for Izzy’s wedding inThe Wedding Shawl. It was the perfect place to write that book.

A portion of a A Fatal Fleece (now in paperback) was written in the Pleasant Street Tea Co. (which is in Gloucester, a REAL town on Cape Ann, just down an ocean road from the fictitious Sea Harbor). The shop, which has deep, comfortable couches and an amazing prosciutto and pesto panini sandwich, is where Nell, Izzy, Birdie and Cass—the Seaside Knitters—would hang out with me, leading me forward, as together we faced a ghost in Birdie’s closet, dealt with an unexpected turn in Cass Halloran’s life, and solved the mystery of a colorful old fisherman’s murder.

But for my most recent book, Angora Alibi, I retreated to Nancy’s deck—a most necessary move since my son and his family (including 3 children under 4) were living with my husband, me, two dogs, and our cat. The porch, filled with toys, no longer held its former serenity. But Nancy’s deck definitely did. As I looked out over the duck ponds and jogging trails, Angora Alibi came to life, and I followed along as a pregnant Izzy and her knitting friends worked deliberately and desperately to uncover the secret behind an infant baby carrier abandoned on a Sea Harbor beach, the untimely death of a young man the seaside knitters all knew—and the murder of an old man each of them held dear.

And now I’m writing the 8^th book in the series, the one in which a stranger comes to Sea Harbor to find out who she is. Where, I wonder, is the best place to write it? I’m thinking it could be on a porch…a coffee shop…a deck…a library. Hmmm…well, it could be almost anywhere, as long as Nell, Birdie, Cass, and Izzy stop by and sit with me, telling me what’s happening next in their lives. Anywhere. Sometimes that’s the perfect place to write.

~Sally

About This Author

Sally Goldenbaum is a philosophy teacher, knitter, editor, and the author of more than two-dozen novels.

Please visit her on Facebook.

Or at her Website: sallygoldenbaum.com

Angora Alibi:
A Seaside Knitters Mystery
7th in Series
Cozy Mystery
Obsidian (May 7, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Hardcover: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0451415349
E-Book File Size: 702 KB
ASIN: B00BYLQO54

The sun is shining in Sea Harbor and a group of friends, the Seaside Knitters, are spending Thursday evenings knitting the sweetest of gifts—a baby blanket. But as the due date draws near, they find they must take time away from their needles and yarn to confront a murder and untangle a mystery before a certain baby is brought into the world….

Everyone is excited about the upcoming birth of Baby Perry and Izzy is trying to take perfect care of herself by getting plenty of exercise. On one of her walks along the beach she notices an abandoned infant car seat complete with a yellow angora baby blanket. After several days she realizes no one is claiming the seat and it bothers her to just leave it there. She stows it the trunk of her car but then the seat starts showing up in her dreams/nightmares. She just can’t get the thing off her mind. What happened to the baby? She just has a feeling something bad happened or is about to happen. Are her raging hormones responsible for these terrible thoughts?

Then a young man who does odd jobs around town dies while scuba diving. Is this the bad thing that has been on her mind? When it is learned that he was murdered and he has a connection to the car seat Izzy rallies the Seaside Knitters to investigate. Their attention to intricate patterns may be just what is needed to catch a killer.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

I look forward to my visits to Sea Harbor. Sally has created a special place with very special people. The friendship of these characters is so genuine, readers feel like a member of the group. Nell, Birdie, Cass and Izzy are blessed to have each other in their lives. The joyful preparations for the new baby are so much fun, aside from the murder, of course.

My favorite character this time was Gabby. She has grown up before our eyes and has a heart as big as all outdoors. She also has a real talent that comes to light which was quite a surprise to the other characters as well as readers.

The death of Horace caught me a little off guard as he was a very interesting individual that had a great way of compensating for his failing eyesight. Something that unfortunately led to his demise.

The new characters really made the plot very complex with several red herrings that keeps the reader on their toes. We are also kept guessing about whether Izzy is having a boy or girl until the big moment arrives. I found this very refreshing as most couples these days know and have a name chosen months in advance. I like the surprise and while we had a list of names ready after the birth of all four of our children it was important to us to actually see and hold them before donning their names upon them. Only one child came home with the first name on the list.

An excellent story, a delightful place, rich characters – I couldn’t ask for more! But there is a tasty recipe and a baby blanket pattern too!

I am anxiously awaiting my next trip to Sea Harbor!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Would you like to win a copy of this wonderful book?

Thanks to the people at Penguin
I have 2 copies to giveaway!!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Sally for 5 Bonus Entries !

If you publicize the giveaway on Twitter or Facebook or anywhere you will receive
5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

Contest Will End May 23, 2013 at 11:59 PM CST
Winners Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winners Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Cozy Wednesday with Author Laura Alden (Giveaway too!)

Cozy Wednesday, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013, Wisconsin Setting 44 Responses »

Apr 242013

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!!
I love that this series is set in Wisconsin!!
Just a hop, skip and jump from my home town!
I am thrilled to have Laura drop by for a visit!!!

One of the things people often ask me is: where do I get the ideas for my books?

The evolution of a book is an odd thing, but most of the time I have an answer for this question. As in, the idea came to me after hearing a news report about something similar. Or the idea popped into my tiny little brain when my husband was talking about a baseball game he’d watched the previous night. Or I was doing some free writing and one thought led to another and then another, and then bingo! the story idea was born.

For Curse of the PTA, however, the answer is completely different. Because…well…I honestly have no idea where the idea came from. None whatsoever. I don’t remember getting the idea. I don’t remember figuring out who the victim was going to be and I don’t remember how I figured out the killer’s identity. I don’t remember anything about setting up the murder and I don’t remember learning the why of it all.

Sad, isn’t it? To think that I’ve forgotten the origins of a book that occupied months of my time is more than a little disconcerting.

But there are bits that I do remember. For instance, there’s a crucial subplot that I couldn’t make work for beans. The motivation I’d given the character was weak and, really, just plain didn’t make sense. It took days of free writing and one critical conversation with my husband to have it gel into something sensible. (If you read the book, please note the dedication. He deserves it, without a doubt.)

And the Big Scene at the end was a big muddle until I begged some writer friends for suggestions. One of their suggestions worked like a charm – “How about adding another character to the scene?” – and everything suddenly started working.

Yes, the evolution of a book is an odd thing, and in my experience, no two books take the same path. Of course, there are some common elements to all the books I write. Such as? Well…there’s the First Flush. These are the heady days when I start a manuscript. The whole thing is fresh and new and I haven’t messed anything up. This is when I know, just know, that this will be the book that will sell zillions of copies and will enable me to quit my day job and write full time.

Sinii

Sadly, the First Flush doesn’t last forever, and somewhere around the middle the Deadly Doldrums set in. These are the days that I know, just know, that this is the book that will end my writing career. This is when I’m sure that everything I’ve written is complete dreck. This is when I know, without a doubt, that the entire book is junk and that my editor will make me toss it out and start all over again.

(This is also when it’s very, very nice to have writer friends who understand about this phase of a book.)

At some point, I write myself out of the Deadly Doldrums and next thing you know, it’s time for the Exciting Endings. These are the scenes the whole book has been aiming toward, the scenes where the Bad Guy (or Bad Girl) is about to get his (or her) just desserts. It’s during the Exciting Endings phase that I forget to eat and sleep, and these are the days when I know, just know, that writing is the best job in the world.

Unfortunately, right on the heels of the Exciting Endings phase is the Wretched Wrap-up. This is the last chapter or two, the chapters where I have to tie everything together, where all the tricky ends of the narrative are knitted together to make a solid and satisfying ending.

This phase makes me extremely nervous. Why? Well, it takes me roughly four months to write a first draft and odds are good that I’ve forgotten all sorts of things that I wrote into the book three months previously.

Not only that, but when I’m done with the Wretched Wrap-up, I’ll be done with the first draft. I’ll be done writing. I’ll be done with those characters and will have to say an odd sort of good-bye. Sure, I’ll see them again during the revisions, but that’s a more distant relationship, one in which I’m merely tweaking at their personalities, not diving down deep into their thoughts and feelings and memories.

So the wrap-up makes me feel a little wretched in a number of ways. Saying good-bye is rarely easy, even to fictional characters.

Then again, when a writer says good-bye to a set of characters, it means only one thing. Another set of characters is just around the bend, patiently waiting their turn to get into a book, waiting for their own evolution.

~Laura

About This Author
Laura Alden grew up in Michigan and graduated from Eastern Michigan University in the 80’s with a (mostly unused) Bachelor of Science degree in geology. Currently, Laura and her husband share their house with two very strange cats. When Laura isn’t writing, she’s working at her day job, reading, yanking weeds out of her garden, or doing some variety of skiing. Laura’s debut novel, “Murder at the PTA” was an Agatha Award finalist for Best First Novel. Her fourth book, “Curse of the PTA,” was released in April 2013.

To find out more about Laura visit her webpage here.

Amazon.com Widgets

Curse of the PTA
3rd in Series
Cozy Mystery
Obsidian (April 2, 2013)
An Imprint of New American Library
Published by The Penguin Group
Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0451415066
E-Book File Size: 711 KB
ASIN: B009UZ9J9O

As the new PTA president, Beth Kennedy wants to make a difference in the lives of the students and faculty at Tarver Elementary. But with a killer on the loose, staying alive is the first order of business…

Beth’s fantastic Story Project, pairing senior citizens from the nursing home with elementary kids, ended up with the PTA publishing a book with the kids retelling the stories they heard from the seniors and it was a huge success. So successful the PTA may want to think about investing some of the money until they can decide how to spend it. Beth has invited Dennis Halpern, a local financial consultant, to their meeting to inform them about their options. Before he can even start to give his presentation different members start lobbying for how they think the money should be spent. Beth does her best to regain control of the meeting and calls for a short break. During the recess Dennis’s ideas are overruled before he even gets to share them. Someone decided to expel him permanently! Right there in the school!

With the doors to the building unlocked, virtually anyone could have done the deed. And they soon discover that Dennis had plenty of secrets. Now locals are whispering that the PTA is cursed, and it’s up to Beth to catch the killer before she gets cashed out.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Beth has her hands full as president of the PTA. Claudia is doing everything she can to make sure nothing runs smoothly. But Beth is resolved to show she can do this job, even if she has to be on every sub-committee to get things done. And now she has a murderer to catch.

What makes these cozies a success are that we all know someone exactly like these characters. We all have a friend like Marina, a senior we care about like Flossie, and one we have to care about because they are like family like Auntie May. We all know troublemakers like Claudia, and we shop at stores like Beth’s Bookstore. I do wish I had a “problem” like Summer’s. The stories are about small town life with problems like a murder we wouldn’t wish on anyone. Thankfully Beth can fit the clues together to help Gus catch the culprit even though he prefers she would keep her nose out of his police work.

Guns are a hot topic now in the U.S., guns in schools even hotter. I am sure Tarver Elementary will have a whole new set of rules by the next installment of this series.

This one will keep you guessing. The people of Rynwood sure keep more than their share of secrets. Kudos Laura! This is a wonderful story!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Thanks to the people at Penguin
I have 2 copies to giveaway!!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Laura for 5 Bonus Entries !

If you publicize the giveaway on Twitter or Facebook or anywhere you will receive
5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

Contest Will End May 8, 2013 at 11:59 PM CST
Winners Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winners Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Review: Assaulted Pretzel by Laura Bradford

A - Z Cozy Mystery Challenge, Mystery & Suspense Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013, Where Are You Reading Challenge 3 Responses »

Mar 082013

Assaulted Pretzel
(An Amish Mystery)
2nd in Series
Cozy Mystery
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group (March 5, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Mary Ann Lasher
Cover Design by Sarah Oberrender
Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425252000
E-Book File Size: 680 KB
ASIN: B0099CUEH4

Claire Weatherly found the simple life she always wanted when she opened a gift shop in Heavenly, Pennsylvania—a small town in the heart of Amish country.

It is time for the Amish Food Festival and Sleep Heavenly has some very special guests. Rob and Ann Karble have come to town not just enjoy the delightful Amish food creations but to add their own excitement to the quiet little town. Rob is the president of Karble Toys and he has plans to add a line of toys designed and created by the Amish. Daniel Lapp and Issac Schrock have been making toys and selling them through a catalog and out of their shop to tourists so this news means they will be able to employ more Amish as their sales catapult.

Then a memo is passed around at the festival from Karble Toys. It states the new line will no longer be made in Heavenly but at one of their factories. This drives someone to commit murder. Rob Karble has been sent to his final reward. No one wants to believe anyone from the Amish community would kill someone but Detective Fisher and Claire have learned the no one is above sin or suspicion. They need to track down the killer before anyone else becomes heaven bound.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Amazing! Laura Bradford in an amazing author!

Heavenly, Pennsylvania is right in the heart of an Amish Community. Tourists come to the little town for a glimpse of their simpler way of life and stop into the shops along Lighted Way owned by both English and Amish residents.

Clare Weatherly has come to Heavenly to get away from the rushed life she was living and a man she realized was completely wrong for her. She has opened up Heavenly Treasures where she sells items crafted by her Amish neighbors. She has quickly made herself at home in Heavenly.

Bradford blends a clever mystery with a little romance to captivate cozy readers. There are two men that make Clare “tingle” but one is totally off limits and the other has his mind on other things, like solving a murder.

Fantastic characters, a delightful setting, and a whodunit that will keep you guessing until the very end. The first book in this series, Hearse and Buggy, was one of my favorite cozies in 2012 and this one is even better. Both books are Heavenly Treasures and get my highest recommendation. I can’t wait for the next installment of this wonderful series!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

To Find Out More About Laura And Her Books Visit Her Webpage Here.

Amazon.com Widgets

Cozy Wednesday With Author Ellery Adams (Giveaway too!)

Cozy Wednesday, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Mystery & Suspense Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013, What An Animal Reading Challenge, Where Are You Reading Challenge 101 Responses »

Mar 062013

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!

I am thrilled to welcome Ellery here today. She is the fabulous author of the
Books by the Bay Mysteries and the Charmed Pie Shoppe Mysteries.

Hi Ellery!

Hi Everyone!

Winter is almost over, and in Havenwood, Georgia, things are definitely heating up. Ella Mae LeFaye’s Charmed Pie Shoppe is the most popular place in town and when she’s asked to provide the desserts for the town’s most anticipated wedding, it seems as though her new business is truly taking off.

Unfortunately, Ella Mae’s personal life isn’t as successful. She’s been in love with handsome firefighter Hugh Dylan since middle school, but she can’t act on her feelings until her divorce is finalized. And her husband isn’t willing to let her go. In fact, he’ll go through terrible lengths to keep her.

At least there’s a wedding to look forward to. Ella Mae infuses each of her miniature pies and tarts with sensations of love and joy and the evening promises to be pure magic. The bride and groom dance on the lawn beneath the glow of a million stars and hovering fireflies and Ella Mae hopes to take a turn over the soft grass with Hugh. But not long after the newlyweds gallop away on horseback, the mother of the bride succumbs to a mysterious illness and slips into a coma.

Ella Mae and her family must pool their gifts and talents in order to catch an enchanted killer. All the while, she must continue to dazzle her pie shop patrons with offerings like the one listed below.

This is one of Ella Mae’s magical wedding pies. Try it and enjoy!

And if you leave a comment telling us about your favorite pie, you could win this Charmed Pie Shoppe prize pack featuring a striped apron, heart dish towels, and a mini pie mold!

Charmed Apple Ginger Maple Crumble Pie

Ingredients

1 Piecrust (if you don’t want to make your dough from scratch, use a refrigerated Pillsbury crust)

6 cups of peeled and chopped apples (pick your favorites or substitute the apples for Bartlett pears)

1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch

½ teaspoon of salt

¼ cup of packed brown sugar

¼ cup of pure Grade A maple syrup

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1 teaspoon of lemon zest

½ teaspoon of ground ginger

Crumble Topping Ingredients

2/3 cup flour

½ cups old-fashioned oats

½ cup packed dark brown sugar

1/3 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces

1 Roll out pie dough and place in a 9 ½-inch deep-dish pie dish Put in the freezer to set.

2 Preheat the oven to 400 F. Place the chopped apples in a large bowl with the cornstarch, ginger, brown sugar, maple syrup, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Toss well using your fingers.

3 Place the apple mixture into the pie dish. Place the pie into the center oven rack and bake for 45 minutes.

4 While baking take all the Oatmeal Crumb Topping ingredients and place them in a bowl. Use your hands and mix the ingredients until large crumbs form. Refrigerate until use.

5 After the 45 minutes are up remove pie and reduce heat to 375F. Sprinkle the crumb topping evenly over the pie and bake for another 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for at least one hour. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

~Ellery

I can’t wait to try this recipe! Thank you Ellery for being my guest today!!

Check out this trailer to Ellery’s Peach Pies and Alibis (A Charmed Pie Shoppe Mystery)!

To Find out more about Ellery and her books visit her webpage here.
Find her on Facebook Twitter GoodReads

You can also find her over at The Cozy Chicks and find The Cozy Chicks on Facebook and Twitter.

Amazon.com Widgets

Peach Pies and Alibis
(A Charmed Pie Shoppe Mystery)
2nd In Series
Cozy Mystery
A Berkley Prime Mystery (March 5, 2013)
The Berkley Publishing Group
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Julia Green
Cover Design by Diana Kolsky
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425251997
E-Book File Size: 550 KB
ASIN: B0099CTZGA

Ella Mae has a lot on her plate with running her very successful Charmed Pie Shoppe but has decided to add a little catering to the mix. Her first job is a dessert buffet at a wedding. Things are going well until right after the couple ride away on horseback the bride’s stepmother is rushed to the hospital where she slips into a coma. This on the tails of a prominent member of the community has died. Ella Mae is afraid these two things may be related.

Ella Mae is also trying to understand her enchanted gift and wants to know the origin of her magical powers. She also needs to know if the attraction she feels for Hugh is true. She needs to get her divorce finalized and then see if she can have a future with the guy she has loved since middle school.

Dollycas’s Thoughts
Peach Pies and Alibis is a very unique story that will have you enthralled from the first page to the last.

In her search to understand her powers Ella Mae’s journey takes the reader on a magical ride. From her mother’s beautiful gardens to a very special place for those that are charmed. I felt like I was on Ella Mae’s shoulder with a bird’s eye view watching the entire story take place. Ellery Adams has the gift to suspend time as her readers almost descend right into the book for an amazing trip that takes us beyond Havenwood. I was most definitely captivating by her words. The way she weaves this mystery with the mystery of finding the killer is flawless.

The characters are wonderful including the lovable Jack Russell terrier, Charleston Chew (Chewy). Ella’s aunts and mother, each with their distinct charms, are extraordinary characters. Loralyn and her family are the Havenwood residents that must be endured by Ella Mae and her family but they add the strife every good cozy needs. Hugh Dylan brings the romantic tension and sparks actually fly. Mr. & Mrs. Caswell even make a cameo appearance. The Shepard’s pie was delicious!

This story get my highest recommendation! If I could I would award it much more than 5 starfish!! I know this is going to be on my 2013 favorites list!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Thanks to the people at Penguin
I have 2 copies to giveaway in addition to Ellery’s Spectacular Prize.!!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Ellery to be entered to win!

If you publicize the giveaway on Twitter or Facebook or anywhere you will receive
5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

Contest Will End March 20, 2013 at 11:59 PM CST
Winners Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winners Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Special Tuesday Edition of Cozy Wednesday With Author Sheila Connolly (Giveaway too!)

1st In A Series Challenge, A - Z Cozy Mystery Challenge, Cozy Wednesday, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Mystery & Suspense Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013, Where Are You Reading Challenge 47 Responses »

Feb 262013

Welcome to this special edition of Cozy Wednesday.
There are just so many wonderful cozies coming out each month
that we have to add some extra cozy days.

I am thrilled to welcome Sheila here today because she has a brand new series – The County Cork Mysteries set in Ireland – having a few Irish ancestors myself I couldn’t wait to read this book!

Hi Sheila!

Hi Everyone!

Things have been a little hectic lately as I just launched my third series. Yes, third. Actually it’s my fourth, but the first one was written under a pen name and went away after three books. The others are ongoing (I hope!).

I’ve always read fast, and when I started writing, I found I write fast too. I had no idea what the right speed was, so I just sat down and did it. I like the pace, and besides, when I’m not writing or at least thinking about writing I feel kind of lost. And for most people, including me, writing is not just about slapping down a bunch of words and sending it off to your publisher—there’s a lot of editing and rewriting involved, so often I find myself writing one new one, editing an earlier one, and proofing a third. Yes, it can get confusing!

Why three series? Because they all reflect parts of my life, linked by the common thread of genealogy. My first series, the Orchard Mysteries, take place in a small town in western Massachusetts, in a colonial house. The house is one I know personally, because my six-times-great-grandfather built it around 1760, and I stayed there when it was a bed and breakfast. The town is real too—a classic New England town with the green in the center, the old white church at one end, and a lot of people whose families have lived there for many generations and whose names are on the road signs. So for the series, the location came first, and then I started adding people to it. I threw in my protagonist, an out-of-work Boston banker, and told her to manage an orchard. Neither of us knew much about orchards when I started, but we’re learning together.

The second series, the Museum Mysteries, came about because I worked for several years at The Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, first as a fundraiser and then as a researcher for hire. I loved working there, in part because it gave me access to amazing collections rich with local history. When I started writing I realized that while most cozies are set in small towns, the cultural community in Philadelphia is like a small town itself, where everyone knows everyone else. Plus there are all sorts of wonderful institutions there to dump a body in.

The most recent is the County Cork Mysteries. The series is based on one of the first books I ever wrote, over ten years ago. Over time some of the characters changed, but the setting never did. My father’s family came from Ireland, but I never had a chance to travel there until about fifteen years ago. He knew very little about the family’s history in Ireland, so I wanted to fill in the blanks. What I never expected was to gobsmacked by the place, in particular West Cork—also known as The Wild West of Ireland—where my grandfather was born. It’s picture postcard pretty, but just a bit wilder. And it’s not a quaint tourist attraction; there are vibrant towns and interesting people and a lot of history there.

Of course, I was hooked the moment I saw that the small town where we were staying had a pub called Connolly’s. I didn’t know then that Connolly’s was legendary, not for its drinks or its atmosphere, but because it was a mecca for musicians in that part of the world—performers whose names you would recognize. I was privileged to be there at the tail end of its heyday. Alas, the man who was the spirit behind it died a few years back, but the family still owns the place and there’s talk of bringing back the music, and I can promise you I’ll be there.

Ireland is kind of like a cozy setting on steroids. Remember that the population of the entire country is still under five million people, and a lot of them are concentrated in Dublin and Cork city. In the more rural areas, everybody knows who’s who, and who their grandparents were, and who they bought the land from. It’s unsettling to an American used to a sort of anonymity. One example: recently I was in a cemetery in County Cork and ran into a stranger, and we got to talking (as everyone does). It turns out that he knows my second cousin Catherine, one of the only other people I know in Ireland—and she hasn’t lived in the neighborhood for fifty years. Things like that keep happening in Ireland.

I have been so happy with the response to the first book in this series, Buried In a Bog. People write to tell me they want to get on a plane for Ireland immediately. I was so worried that I’d make it sound trite or superficial, but instead I did what I’d hoped to do: convey the spirit of the place. Reviewers have said that my love for Ireland shines through.

Capturing a place on a page is one of the joys of writing. Filling it with characters that people can identify with and care about is another. I feel very lucky to be doing what I do.

~Sheila

Sheila, Thank you so much for visiting today! I don’t know how you do it, keeping all this series going, but I am so glad you do!!!

About This Author

Sheila Connolly has taught art history, structured and marketed municipal bonds for major cities, worked as a staff member on two statewide political campaigns, and served as a fundraiser for several non-profit organizations. She also managed her own consulting company providing genealogical research services. Now a full-time writer, she thinks writing mysteries is a lot more fun than any of her previous occupations.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime-New England (president 2011), the national Sisters in Crime, and the fabulous on-line SinC chapter, the Guppies. She also belongs to Romance Writers of America and Mystery Writers of America.

Sheila is Regent of her local DAR chapter, and a member of the Society of Mayflower Descendants. She’s also the grandchild of Irish immigrants (in case you’re worried that she’s a snob). In addition to genealogy, Sheila loves restoring old houses, visiting cemeteries, and traveling. She is married, and has one daughter and two cats.

She blogs with Poe’s Deadly Daughters and Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen on Fridays, and Killer Characters the 25th of each month.
Check out her webpage: www.sheilaconnolly.com

Buried In a Bog
(A County Cork Mystery)
A Brand New Series
Cozy Mystery
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group (February 5, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Daniel Craig
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425251898
E-Book File Size: 531 KB
ASIN: B0095ZMHUW

Honoring her late grandmother’s wish, Maura Donovan sets off on an adventure that could change her life. She travels to the small Irish village where her grandmother was born to connect with one of her grandmother’s friends and maybe learn a bit about her ancestors. The small community welcomes her with open arms and she even start to work in the local pub.

The pub is bursting at the seams as people gather to talk about the body found in a nearby bog. They speculate he may have been in there for more than 50 years. Maura realizes she man know something about the dead man but before she can talk to the authorities her own life is put in jeopardy. She starts to get that sinking feeling she just may be getting in over her head.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

With an Irish grandfather myself that I never was able to meet I was so excited to read this book. It is a delightful debut to a series that I know I will love.

The author lets us escape to the beautiful countrysides of County Cork. Even when it is raining or foggy it sounds like charming place. She also gives us the history of the townlands and the people. She takes the time to explain the traditional naming patterns found in Ireland like the first born son is named for the father’s father. This custom could get quite confusing in large families. It gives an interesting twist to the story.

We are with Maura just as she starts on her journey to discover Ireland and its people. I am really looking forward to getting to know all the characters better in the next installments, especially Rose. She seems to have led a life very similar to Maura’s. Life runs at a much faster speed in Boston than it does in Leap but both stuck pretty close to home and put family needs ahead of their own. I look forward to a time of awakening for both young ladies.

Maura’s adventure to Ireland was quite a treat, the mysteries added were just icing on the cake. I am ready for my trip back to County Cork today. I can’t wait for book #2.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

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Thanks to the people at Penguin
I have 2 copies to giveaway!!

PLUS 1 COPY DIRECT FROM SHEILA CONNOLLY!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Sheila for 5 Bonus Entries !

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Contest Will End March 12, 2013 at 11:59 PM CST
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and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Special Guest – Author Carol K. Carr (Giveaway too!)

A - Z Reading Challenge, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Mystery & Suspense Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013 40 Responses »

Feb 212013

Carol has just added 3 signed copies to the giveaway and her publicist is providing another copy too!

THAT’S A TOTAL OF 6 COPIES OF

Just scroll down and click the link for the entry form!!!

Carol writes the Madam of Espionage Mysteries featuring India Black.
This series has me hooked. The previous book in this series India Black and the Widow of Windsor made by Best Reads of 2011 list.

I am thrilled to Welcome Carol back to Escape With Dollycas!

Thanks for the opportunity to do this guest post, Lori. India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy is the third book in the “India Black, Madam of Espionage” series, published by Berkley Prime Crime. I’ve just submitted the manuscript of the fourth novel to my editor. Publication is planned for February, 2014.

Personally, I love a good series. There’s the delight of discovering the first book and the pleasurable anticipation in waiting for the next one, and (dare I mention this?) the crushing disappointment when the author fails to meet your expectations. So how does a writer keep things fresh for readers? How does she keep things fresh for herself? Because (and do I really dare mention this?) sometimes the author can become bored, too.

The most famous example of a writer growing tired of his creation is no doubt Arthur Conan Doyle, who grew so weary of Sherlock Holmes that he sent him over the Reichenbach Falls. Even dense Dr. Watson could have detected that Doyle needed a change when that happened. However, Doyle had to resurrect his hero when the public demanded more Holmes.

You can definitely carry on a series for too long. Somewhere, on a site that shall remain nameless, I stumbled across a page called “Authors Who Should Have Quit By Now.” Yep, it’s about series which have continued past their sell-by dates. (By the way, when I was trying to find that page, I typed in “writers who” and up popped “smoke weed.” People are weird.) Anyway, back to the question at hand – how to avoid becoming an AWSHQBN. Four books into my series and I’m giving that issue some serious thought. As always, I turn to the experts: writers I enjoy who have written successful series over a period of years. Here are some of the methods they use, some of which I’m considering for use in my series.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: I know, that seems obvious. Who wants to read about a character that remains static over twenty years, no change in marital status, drinking habits, or hairstyles? But hang on a minute. The familiarity of a character is quite frequently what attracts a reader to a series. They don’t want their hero to change. They’d be disappointed if Stephanie Plum became a nun or Kay Scarpetta picked up a golf club, unless she’s going to wield it against a serial killer. The trick is to introduce just enough change in the character’s life to keep things interesting for the reader. And it goes without saying that that change has to be consistent with the character’s, er, character. I don’t think any readers expect India Black to settle down and become a housewife, obsessing over flower arrangements and doing needlepoint. But she does need a few changes in her life from time to time, just to keep her on her toes. Some big changes will be coming her way in the fourth book next year.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION: Some authors keep boredom away by dropping their heroines into new locales. It doesn’t have to be exotic, although that’s fun. Just depositing your character into a place that is unfamiliar provides an opportunity for your character to stretch a bit, in terms of how she deals with a new environment. Think of Mary Russell in Palestine, or Jack Reacher wandering the backroads of America. I’m going to use this tactic myself, if the publisher wants a fifth India Black. It is time for her to get out of London and head for the Dark Continent, which offers me the chance to write about one of my favorite historical subjects (British colonial history), countries (South Africa) and incidents (the Battle of Rorke’s Drift).

SEX (OR NOT): This one is problematic. Writers use sex for lots of reasons. It moves the relationship along between characters. It can be a mistake the character has to confront. It can be an affirmative, life-changing experience for the character. It may also increase book sales. (Ten points for you if Shades of Grey just popped into your head). But beware if you have included a romantic aspect to your series. You have entered a minefield. Tread carefully. Especially if you’ve made your heroine a prickly, proud and independent woman. My character India Black has a thing for the prim and proper French. They spar and flirt and strike sparks off each other. Will they ever do it? Yes. No. Maybe. I like the tease and the sexual tension. Lots of readers do. But at some point the tease goes on too long, and then you become exasperated with those two dolts who should just get it over with and clear the air. And then what? Where’s the sexual tension? Can you keep it alive? Do you want to? I doff my hat to Elizabeth Peters, who handled this subject perfectly. Even after her heroine Amelia Peabody married Radcliffe Emerson, the two continued to generate heat. It’s a rare accomplishment. Not being Ms. Peters, I shudder every time I think about how to handle this issue in my series.

These are just a few of the things I’ve been mulling over as I try to deliver a series that retains its essential characters and characteristics, yet remains lively and creative. If any of you have any ideas about how to do this, I’d appreciate your comments. Thanks again, Lori, for the opportunity to speak to your readers.

India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy
(A Madam of Espionage Mystery)
3rd in Series
Historical Mystery
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Company (February 5, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Alan Ayers
Cover Design by Rita Frangie
Trade Paperback: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425255957
E-Book File Size: 679 KB
ASIN: B0099CGJHI

In Victorian London, India Black has all the attributes a high-class madam needs to run a successful brothel–wit, beauty, and an ability to lie with a smile. Luckily for Her Majesty’s Government, all these talents also make her a first-rate spy…

Revolt has spread across Europe and has now reached England. Anarchists have begun assassinating lords and earls. Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (Dizzy) has sent for India Black. He believes she is ready to handle an assignment on her own. He wants her to infiltrate the underground group he believes is responsible for the attacks. To stop their deadly plot she will travel from the poorest regions of London to the highest levels of society. All in attempt to uncover the secrets that threaten her very existence.

Dollycas’s Thoughts
Carol K. Carr is an amazing storyteller, just Amazing! She takes us back to the Victorian Era and immerses us in the political and social cultures and wraps it with mystery, intrigue, and humor in her own unique writing style.

India Black is a strong, savvy, cheeky protagonist. French appears later in this story and some of the secrets of his life are starting to be revealed as are the secrets to India’s past. Their romantic tension is slowly building with hopes of a real romance. Vincent is a very colorful character. The anarchists are quite an unconventional group. One is just downright strange.

The main mystery is carefully plotted and full of surprises. India places herself in some very dangerous situations and more than once I thought she might be meeting her maker.

Carr keeps us on the edge of seats one minute to laughing out loud the next. I feel like I am watching a movie rather than reading a book. In my review of India Black and the Widow of Windsor I said ”her words are like a thousand pictures” and that is even more true with these story. You can hear the door creaks, the rats running through the alleys, the thump as India hits the ground and the splash of the water. Pictures are painted in your mind vividly. You see the squalor of Seven Dials, the bints favorite yellow dress and all of India’s finery. You can smell the stench being emitted from Vincent and almost taste what Mrs. Drinkwater tries to pass off as edible food.

The author also leaves us a bit of a cliffhanger to tempt us as we wait for the next India Black adventure. I can’t wait foe the next Madam of Espionage Mystery.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Find out all about Carol K. Carr and her books here.

Would you like to win a copy of this wonderful book?

Thanks to the people at Penguin
I have 2 copies to giveaway!!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Carol for 5 Bonus Entries !

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5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

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and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Cozy Wednesday with Author Avery Aames (Giveaway too!)

A - Z Cozy Mystery Challenge, Cozy Wednesday, Giveaways, Guest Posts, Mystery & Suspense Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013 51 Responses »

Feb 202013

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!

I am so happy to welcome Avery back to Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book. She is the author of the Cheese Shop Mysteries and I look forward to each and every one. The latest, To Brie or Not To Brie was released February 5. I wanted to learn a bit more about the author behind these wonderful stories so today she stops by to answer a few questions!

Hi Avery!

Hi Everyone!

1. While visiting your website recently I had an “aha moment”. You always looked familiar to me and now I know why. You were an actress on television. Mystery shows I loved to watch and popular commercials. Can you tell us a bit about your television experience? Both as an actress and a screenwriter.

After graduating college, I wanted to be an actress. I headed to Los Angeles, and I quickly found work. I was one of the lucky ones. I made a living doing, primarily, commercials. I had that girl-next-door face. You might have seen me pitching Diet Pepsi, Milky Way, Jell-O, Wonder Bread, and more. Cracking into film and television roles was a bit more difficult. I acted on “Murder, She Wrote.” Angela Lansbury, what a talent and what a lady. I won roles on hits like “Dallas,” “Hart to Hart,” and other TV shows, and I got close to nabbing a couple of series regular roles….but didn’t and I soon realized I needed to write a vehicle for myself if I was going to have a bigger career. At first, I focused on television. Again, I was fortunate enough to come up with the idea for a TV show called “Out of this World,” which became successful in syndication. Then I turned my sights back to film. Writing the long-form screenplay really intrigued me. I loved telling a complete story. I loved writing dialogue. I wrote a few mysteries and thrillers. I wrote a couple of romantic comedies, too, that I felt were perfect for Julia Roberts and Meg Ryan. I was working on networking those possibilities into realities when…my husband was offered a new job across the country working for ESPN. Because my career had not yet soared, and even though I was still making a living as an actress, we decided that the move was right for our family. We had a young son. I turned my attention to writing novels.

2. Was it a difficult transition to cozy mysteries after writing screenplays?

No. Screenplay writing helped me see the overall structure of a story. When I gave up writing screenplays, I took novel writing classes. I read some fabulous books by Chris Roerden and Hallie Ephron that helped me understand how to enhance my plot, my prose, and my characters. While screenplays are visual, novels are internal. A reader wants to know what the protagonist is thinking and feeling. Learning how to “show” these aspects and not “tell” them was the hardest thing for me to learn.

3. Did you have a mentor that encouraged your writing early in life?

I had a teacher who told me to give up writing forever. Kid you not! My seventh grade teacher. He said I didn’t have talent. At the time, I had written a short story that he didn’t like. Who was he to dash my dreams? All of you budding authors, don’t buy into this kind of dialogue. However, I did believe him and I put my pen aside for a long, long time. It took the desire to write a screenplay to bring me back to the page. And I battled self-doubt (still do on occasion…) for many years. Rejection by agents didn’t help. But I am nothing if not persevering. I won that award during high school. I’m not quite sure why. Hmm. I guess I was resolute even then. LOL

4. What do you draw on for inspiration when you sit down to write the Cheese Shop Mysteries?

Cheese. Ha-ha. Actually, I start with a theme, then ask myself “what if” and I go from there. I try to listen to my protagonist, Charlotte, and see what story she has to tell. I ask her about her feelings. I consider what challenges she must face. I also consider the play that Charlotte’s grandmother will be putting on at the local theater because often that production will influence what happens in town. In To Brie or Not To Brie, Grandmére is putting on “Hamlet” in the Village Green, open-aire. As it says in the blurb for the book, Revenge, secrets, murder. Shakespeare has arrived in Providence. I love Shakespeare. Thinking about his drama stirred all sorts of intrigue in my mind.

5. When you pick up a book to read just for fun, what type of book do you like to escape into?

I love reading thrillers as well as mysteries. It truly depends on my mood. I love to read my fellow authors on both of my blogs, Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen and Killer Characters. All are wonderful writers. However, I love to escape into a Lisa Gardner, Meg Gardiner, or Jamie Freveletti action- or suspense-packed novel, as well.

6. What are your reading right now?

I’m judging a contest for Thrillerfest, a thriller conference held each year, so I am reading a ton…literally a ton…of debut novels. Some have been great. Some were mysteries (and terrific), but they were not thrillers. Many didn’t grab my interest. When I’m done with this commitment, I have a Jamie Freveletti thriller and a Julie Hyzy cozy waiting on my night stand. Yay!

7. You are writing a new series coming out in July. Would you like to tell us a little bit about it?

COMING IN JULY

Oh, yes, please! It’s called A COOKBOOK NOOK MYSTERY. The first title is Final Sentence, a tribute to the “book-ish” theme of the series. Get it? Anyway, this is so much fun. I’m writing under my “real” name, Daryl Wood Gerber. The story is set in the fictional seaside town of Crystal Cove, California (sort of between Monterey and Santa Cruz). It features Jenna Hart, a foodie and avid reader and former ad exec, who helps her aunt open a cookbook store and café that should have opened thirty years ago. Like my Cheese Shop Mysteries, the books will include recipes. I’ve been cooking up a ton of cookies! I’ve always been a cook, and I have a great collection of cookbooks, but I am learning so much more as I explore the world of cookbooks. I was inspired to write the series after visiting a darling cookbook store called Salt & Pepper in Occoquan, Virginia. The owner was selling not only cookbooks but culinary mysteries (like many of those from Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen authors), fictional foodie mysteries, and knickknacks. I got lost in the store and knew I could get lost in this series. My editor is very excited. She loves the new world.

8. If money was no object and you could escape to anywhere in the world to write, where would you go and what do you think the book would be about?

Great question!! I would escape to Lake Tahoe. I spent all my summers there as a girl, and it’s still the most inspirational place in the world to me. The lake is incredibly beautiful. The scent of the pines stirs my soul. I love to swim in the icicle-cold water, take hikes, and meditate. I have written a number of suspense and thriller novels set in Lake Tahoe, so I would like to rewrite all of them and get them published. I also have one thriller, a work-in-progress, set in the San Francisco Bay Area that I would like to finish, as well. Oh, and there’s a women’s fiction story—magical in nature—that I’d like to write, too. So much to do…lots of time!

Thank you Avery so much for visiting today! I hope you come back soon and often!!!!

You can find Avery on Facebook, Twitter, GoodReads Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen, Killer Characters and her webpage.

To Brie or Not To Brie
(CHEESE SHOP MYSTERY)
4th in Series
Cozy Mystery
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group (February 5, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Teresa Fasolino
Cover Design by Laura K. Corless
Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425255544
E-Book File Size: 645 KB
ASIN: B0095ZP7UE

To Brie or Not To Brie (A Cheese Shop Mystery #4)

Murder, revenge, and secrets: Shakespeare has arrived in Providence, Ohio…

Charlotte Bessette—owner of Fromagerie Bessette, known by locals as The Cheese Shop is one busy lady. She is planning the menu for best friend and cousin’s wedding and she is trying to come up with new and unique choices like Brie Blueberry Ice Cream. Her grandmother’s theater group is doing Hamlet outside on the Village Green and Charlotte has to keep the cast and crew well fed. Plus she has her own wedding to plan or at least settle on a date for the wedding.

As if she doesn’t ave enough on her plate, just days before her cousin’s wedding a stranger is found dead in the freezer at the Igloo Ice Cream Parlor. The murder weapon seems to be a container of Charlotte’s new ice cream creation. Charlotte has no choice but dive right in to investigation when she learns the strangers death could destroy everything she has worked for and everything she loves.

Dollycas’s Thoughts
Another wonderful cozy from Avery Aames!

She has blended together a colorful cast of characters that are as varied as the cheese and the wine in Charlotte’s Shop. Charlotte is as sharp as cheddar and as sweet as a Young Camembert. Her grandparents are aged to perfection, Rebecca has that fruity quality with her knowledge of television crime shows she is so determined to help Charlotte catch the killer. Jordan and Matthew are smooth and fine but Jordan has a secret which adds a smokey quality. Jacky is hiding something too, her history has that Swiss quality, full of holes. Then there are a couple of characters just trying to cause trouble that remind me of a good block of Limburger.

Aames has plated up a fine mystery as well that keeps the reader guessing until the very last clue falls into place. She also leaves us hungry for the next installment with a juicy tidbit on the final page. The Days of Wine and Roquefort cannot get to my door fast enough.

Plus there are recipes including the one for Brie Blueberry Ice Cream!!

To Brie or Not To Brie “Methinks” everyone should purchase this book as soon as possible.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

I want to thank the author and the people at Berkley Prime Crime! Escape With Dollycas Into A New Book is quoted on the Praise page for To Brie or Not To Brie. Thank you so much!!

Thanks to the people at Penguin I have
2 copies of this awesome book to giveaway
so be sure to fill out the form below to enter!!

U.S. and CANADIAN RESIDENTS
You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Leave a comment for Avery for 5 Bonus Entries!

If you publicize the giveaway anywhere you will receive
5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

Contest Will End March 6, 2013 at 11:59 PM CST
Winners Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winners Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

CLICK HERE FOR ENTRY FORM

Review: Cat Trick by Sofie Kelly

A - Z Cozy Mystery Challenge, Cruisin Thru Cozies Reading Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013, What An Animal Reading Challenge, Where Are You Reading Challenge 1 Response »

Feb 162013

Cat Trick:
A Magical Cats Mystery
4th in Series
Cozy Mystery
Obsidian (February 5, 2013)
Published by New American Library
A Division of The Penguin Group
Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0451414694
E-Book File Size: 539 KB
ASIN: B008H7KGC0

Kathleen Paulson enjoys her life as a small-town librarian with two extraordinary cats, Owen and Hercules, who provide companionship during the quiet times and have a remarkable talent for sleuthing when murder disturbs the peace….

Mike Glazer comes back to his hometown of Mayville Heights as the representative of Legacy Tours, a Chicago based firm the local businesses are hoping to convince set up a vacation destination package for the town. He is not the same guy they remember, he has become a real loudmouth and it isn’t long before someone shuts him up for good.

When Kathleen or should I say Hercules finds the body on the boardwalk she just can’t help but get involved in the investigation. Her boyfriend, Detective Marcus Gordon, has begged her to leave the investigation to him but Kathleen with a little help from Hercules and Owen is determined to book the killer for an “extended stay in prison before someone else takes a permanent vacation”.

Dollycas’s Thoughts
Match two magical kitties with a extremely inquisitive librarian and a murder or two and you have all the makings of an extraordinary mystery series.

Kathleen’s contract in Mayville Heights is almost up and she will have to make a big decision whether to stay or go back to Boston where her family lives. Until then she has plenty to keep her busy both at the library and with yet another murder. This time the clues are hard to come by and the “gossip grapevine” is working overtime. It is the cats that literally dig up the clues needed to solve this puzzler. Hopefully Kathleen stepping on the good detective’s toes doesn’t stall their romance. Roma and Maggie would be devastated.

Sofie Kelly has created a very identifiable cast of characters, human and feline. You know we all talk to our cats and her “catversations” are real and true and at times hilarious. I absolutely love Owen and Hercules. It doesn’t hurt that I have their twins living with me. I have not noticed that mine have a magical powers yet but there’s still hope. Kathleen is surrounded by a wonderful group of friends and I know she will realize that no matter home homesick she is for her family Mayville Heights is now her home.

A captivating cozy! Curl up with it, your favorite kitty, and enjoy!!

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

Find out more about Sofie Kelly on her webpage here.

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Review: Every Trick in the Book by Lucy Arlington

A - Z Cozy Mystery Challenge, Cruisin Thru Cozies Reading Challenge, Read - A - Latte 150 Challenge, Reviews 2013 1 Response »

Feb 122013

Every Trick in the Book
(A Novel Idea Mystery)
2nd In Series
Cozy Mystery
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group (February 5, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by Julia Green
Cover Design by Lesley Worrell
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425251676
E-Book File Size: 680 KB
ASIN: B0095ZMFW2

You have heard it said that all of us has a twin somewhere out there. What would you do if you came face to face with yours? and then they end up murdered! at an event you have helped organize!!

That’s what happens to Lila Wilkens in this second installment of the Novel Idea Mysteries. She has helped organize the Book and Author Festival and she was hoping to discover some talented new authors but she never imagined there would be one dead body and then another. Lila finds herself hunting down another killer and the clues that bring everything together are found in a very familiar place for this new literary agent. Can she catch the culprit before she is written out of the story?

Dollycas’s Thoughts
There is so much to love about this story!

A behind the scenes glimpse at book publishing from the agents point of view set in an enchanting place. Inspiration Valley, North Carolina – sounds like a perfect escape for me. I would never want to come back. Lila’s job would delight me as well.

The author has her hands full because she is not only writing the plot and sub-plots, she also has to come up with snippets of manuscripts and proposals for stories so that Lila can do her job. She does this with a precision that makes them all blend together and flow seamlessly for the reader. A lot happens in this story but it happens so naturally that before you know it you are on the last page and sad to have the story end.

The characters are superb and Lila’s new hire could prove to very interesting in the next editions. The rest of the agents at Novel Idea Literary are starting to gel. Lila’s son Trey’s path is changing. Lila is getting settled in her cottage after a little moving day drama and her relationship with Sean, the policeman, is moving forward even as he wishes she would just stay out of his cases.

I am excited for the next story, Books, Cooks and Crooks to be released in December. I am sure Lila will find “in the soup” again and I will devour every word.

Your Escape With A Good Book Travel Agent

About This Author
Lucy Arlington is the nom de plume for the writing team of Ellery Adams and Sylvia May, two friends who collaborated on an idea that became A Novel Idea Mystery Series. Both are authors in their own right; Ellery writes cozy mysteries and Sylvia women’s fiction.

Ellery Adams currently writes the Books by the Bay Mysteries and the Charmed Pie Shoppe Mysteries. To learn more about Ellery and her books, visit her website at www.elleryadamsmysteries.com.

Sylvia May’s first novel, The Unraveling of Abby Settel, received an Honorable Mention in the 2011 Reader Views Literary Awards. To learn more about Sylvia and her novel, visit her website at www.sylviamay.com.

Find out more at http://lucyarlington.com/

I want to thank the authors and the people at Berkley Prime Crime! Escape With Dollycas Into A New Book is quoted on the Praise page for Every Trick In The Book. Thank you so much!!

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